During this roundtable, Novi customers reviewed and shared their best practices for using Novi Groups with email marketing platforms Constant Contact and MailChimp —inspiring enhancement ideas to current email marketing practices.
Quick Links:
Constant Contact and Novi AMS Integration Overview
Key takeaways from the roundtable:
Custom Fields are Key:
Using custom fields to collect relevant data from members is a game-changer when it comes to segmenting Novi Groups into useful data
Taking time to create custom fields can greatly enhance open rates by targeting those who actually want to receive correspondence on certain topics
Thoughtful Group Conditions Create Better Segmentation:
Group conditions can be utilized and combined in unexpected ways to capture segments such as:
Targeting new event attendees who have registered for the 1st time ever
Targeting persons who have/have not logged in to increase engagement
Contacting only the Billing Contact when sending dues reminders
and many more!
Using Drip Campaigns Automation To Reach Segments:
Email marketing platforms have "triggers" that recognize when a new person is added to a Novi Group and can schedule to send the new person specific emails over a pre-determined length of time
Novi customers use drip campaigns to:
reach new members
inform members about upcoming membership renewals
increase awareness as event dates approach
follow up after events for membership opportunities
Suggestions to Increase Email Marketing Engagement Include:
Using Constant Contact and MailChimp's time optimization tool to let the system send campaigns at optimal engagement times
Use segmentation to reach smaller groups of members who have a genuine interest, resulting in higher open rates
Keep email titles short and sweet, and use minimal emojis
Try to avoid sounding too generic or robotic
Customize emails to feel personalized from sender
Extra Tips Shared from Novi Customers About Email Marketing:
Timing is everything
Turning off sync for groups no longer needed helps manage contact level within email marketing platform
Utilize the resend to non-openers feature in your email marketing platform
Increase your click-through rate by having your call-to-action be a button spanning the entire email width and have it very close to the top of the email
Automated marketing is an awesome platform for new member onboarding
The more specific you can make your groups at the outset, the easier it will be
Create a group of renewals, and 3 months out send them an email from the president making sure they are happy with their membership — so when they get their invoice it's not such a surprise
GIFS: https://gifcompressor.com allows me to upload gifs into our emails
Use a custom field for email preferences within a person's Novi profile, and make it key information where members select what specific topics they want to receive emails about when they sign up as a member
Overall, Novi customers who spend time creating thoughtful Novi Groups and who implement custom fields to collect relevant data report higher engagement and open rates on their email marketing platforms!